It’s Time to Create a Ridiculous Invention
Have you ever wanted to build a ridiculous contraption with your kids? A homemade machine that takes on a simple day-to-day task — I don’t know howto transfer salt , for example — and makes it unnecessarily complex, albeit efficient. It may never have occurred to you to spend an entire weekend looking for a new way to throw a bar of soap into someone’s hand, but if everyone had time, wouldn’t it?
These cunning devices are known as Rube Goldberg machines, named after the cartoonist Rube Goldberg, whose cartoons often depicted devices that performed everyday tasks in complex ways. For decades, Rube Goldberg, Inc. held competitions annually to encourage students to build their own cars. And their final challenge can help us with what’s on everyone’s mind right now:
If you need inspiration to build your own car, look no further than the Joseph Machines YouTube channel , which features a variety of tools for everyday tasks or common problems.
The Cake Server machine , in particular, is my favorite because it includes all the elements that could be used in a ridiculous machine: spilled juice, a candle that melts butter, a toddler laptop crashing, and almost miss the swinging chandelier. :
Other Joseph Gems You Can Learn:
Lest you get discouraged by Joseph’s cars, which are clearly professional quality, here is one that the author: KJ Dell’Antonia’s children are complete amateurs! -Built-in in just seven hours. She invited them to see how far they could walk through the house, and they took this task very seriously:
If you and your kids want to take part in the Rube Goldberg Bar of Soap video competition, they are accepting applications until May 31, so you can get started right away.